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A deadly mystery by CWA Diamond Dagger winner Catherine Aird: Where there's a will, there's a way-for murder That Miss Beatrice Wansdyke had died is not particularly surprising. A chemistry mistress at the Girls' Grammar School in Berebury, she was a longtime sufferer of diabetes who managed to live her modest life to a ripe old age. But one thing is odd-Beatrice Wansdyke died a very wealthy woman. What was an old schoolteacher doing with a small fortune? Meanwhile, Detective Inspector C. D. show more Sloan, Calleshire's finest investigator, learns he is about to become a father. But with ominous players hell-bent on pursuing Miss Wansdyke's money, will Sloan live to see his child's first birthday? show lessTags
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It wasn't so much how Beatrice Wansdyke died that was the trouble - it was what she had when she died. £250,000 - which I calculated to be worth $1.2 million today. So what was a quiet, elderly schoolteacher doing with that kind of money? Her lifestyle didn't reflect a taste for the good life. She lived in a modest home in a quiet suburb that the police describe in the most glowing terms - "no trouble, even on Saturday nights!"
So when the medical examiner finds a few suspicious indications, he informs Inspector C D Sloan. Sloan is plenty busy on his own. His wife is 9 months pregnant with their first baby, and growing more irritable and uncomfortable by the minute. (Hm, wonder what that's like.) But Superintendent Leeyes is just as show more determined that Sloan figure out how the woman died, where the money came from, and whether there was any foul play involved.
I really enjoy this series. I love the dry, English humor that runs through the books. The exchange between Inspectors Sloan and Harpe has all the humor of Abbott and Costello, but with a British flavor. My only complaint is that sometimes the books leave a lot of loose ends. But this one is one of the best and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys the genre. show less
So when the medical examiner finds a few suspicious indications, he informs Inspector C D Sloan. Sloan is plenty busy on his own. His wife is 9 months pregnant with their first baby, and growing more irritable and uncomfortable by the minute. (Hm, wonder what that's like.) But Superintendent Leeyes is just as show more determined that Sloan figure out how the woman died, where the money came from, and whether there was any foul play involved.
I really enjoy this series. I love the dry, English humor that runs through the books. The exchange between Inspectors Sloan and Harpe has all the humor of Abbott and Costello, but with a British flavor. My only complaint is that sometimes the books leave a lot of loose ends. But this one is one of the best and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys the genre. show less
Beatrice Wansdyke, chemistry mistress at an all girl’s school in Berebury, England, is found dead in her home due to complications from diabetes, from which she had suffered for many years. Her only living relatives were two nephews, one the co-owner of a plastics company and the other a ne’er do well, and a niece who is a nurse. Her death appeared to be from natural causes until the police find that her bank account contained a quarter of a million pounds, recently deposited into her account. Inspector CD Sloan has been called upon to investigate, but he has other challenges as well – his wife is expecting their first child at any moment.
Some Die Eloquent is the 8th book in the Inspector CD Sloan series by Catherine Aird. This show more series is a delightful example of a Britsh police procedural. Sloan is a modest, but effective, police inspector who is hampered in his investigations by his boss, Superintendent Leeyes, and his subordinate, Detective-Constable Crosby. He is a very likable character and both Leeyes and Crosby provide comic relief. The much-maligned Crosby usually unknowingly provides an insight that aids Sloan in finding the culprit, thereby making himself somewhat valuable to the team. Superintendent Leeyes spends his personal time taking classes at the local college and wants to share his knowledge with his subordinates, who usually find ways to avoid him.
I found this book well-plotted and the storyline very interesting. I don’t think it’s spoiling anything to say that there was a murder committed, but Sloan first had to prove that it was murder before he could narrow down the murderer from several plausible suspects. Sloan is not afraid to use his intuition and follow hunches, which typically turn out to be correct.
Although this is considered a police procedural and was written in 1979, it has many of the elements found in Golden Age mysteries, and I think fans of the genre would enjoy this book. Some of the book – the portion taking place in the hospital – is a little dated, but not enough to hamper one’s enjoyment. show less
Some Die Eloquent is the 8th book in the Inspector CD Sloan series by Catherine Aird. This show more series is a delightful example of a Britsh police procedural. Sloan is a modest, but effective, police inspector who is hampered in his investigations by his boss, Superintendent Leeyes, and his subordinate, Detective-Constable Crosby. He is a very likable character and both Leeyes and Crosby provide comic relief. The much-maligned Crosby usually unknowingly provides an insight that aids Sloan in finding the culprit, thereby making himself somewhat valuable to the team. Superintendent Leeyes spends his personal time taking classes at the local college and wants to share his knowledge with his subordinates, who usually find ways to avoid him.
I found this book well-plotted and the storyline very interesting. I don’t think it’s spoiling anything to say that there was a murder committed, but Sloan first had to prove that it was murder before he could narrow down the murderer from several plausible suspects. Sloan is not afraid to use his intuition and follow hunches, which typically turn out to be correct.
Although this is considered a police procedural and was written in 1979, it has many of the elements found in Golden Age mysteries, and I think fans of the genre would enjoy this book. Some of the book – the portion taking place in the hospital – is a little dated, but not enough to hamper one’s enjoyment. show less
I'm not sure I understand the title. It was a good mystery. Poor Mrs Sloan having her baby while her husband is out solving crimes. Not as captivating as Henreitta Who? but fun anyway.
As this, the 8th installment opens, a schoolteacher has died, apparently of natural causes. So why are the police interested? It turns out that there is something along the order of a small fortune in her bank account that no one can account for. Sloan gets called into the case but is somewhat preoccupied with the imminent birth of his first child.
This one had a much better resolution than the last few; by that I mean that the denouement was not as sudden or abrupt, and you can really follow the logic throughout the story if you look carefully. I liked this one much better than any of this series since Henrietta Who. Recommended for those who enjoy British mysteries in general or police procedurals. I'm really liking Sloan as the series show more progresses. show less
This one had a much better resolution than the last few; by that I mean that the denouement was not as sudden or abrupt, and you can really follow the logic throughout the story if you look carefully. I liked this one much better than any of this series since Henrietta Who. Recommended for those who enjoy British mysteries in general or police procedurals. I'm really liking Sloan as the series show more progresses. show less
When elderly schoolteacher Beatrice Wansdyke dies of diabetes, everything points to natural causes until the police discovers she died with a quarter of a million pounds in her bank account. In addition, Beatrice had reported her dog missing the day before her death. Afterwards, the police discovers the dog buried in her garden.
Inspector Sloan must prove this death was a premeditated murder and catch a cold-blooded murderer.
Inspector Sloan must prove this death was a premeditated murder and catch a cold-blooded murderer.
money in account of diabetic spinster sets by investigation by Sloan
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The Calleshire Chronicles (Sloan and Crosby Canon) by Catherine Aird
25 works; 1 member
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Author Information
Catherine Aird is the author of more than twenty crime novels and story collections, most of which feature Detective Chief Inspector C. D. Sloan. She holds an honorary M.A. from the University of Kent and was made an M.B.E. She lives in England
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title*
- Kuolema on kaunopuheinen
- Original title
- Some Die Eloquent
- Original publication date
- 1980-03
- People/Characters
- Robert Chestley (coroner); Hilda Collins (biology mistress); William Edward Crosby (Detective Constable); Hector Smithson Dabbe (Doctor); Malcolm Darnley; Roger Elspin (Doctor) (show all 18); Superintendent Leeyes; Peter McCavity (Doctor); Fred Morton (undertaker); Larky Nolson; John Paston (Doctor); Briony Petforth (nurse); Nicholas Petforth; Christopher Dennis Sloan (Detective Inspector, C. D., Seedy); Margaret Sloan; Beatrice Gwendoline Wansdyke (chemistry mistress); Bertram George Wansdyke; Pauline Wansdyke
- Important places
- Calleshire, England, UK; Berebury, Calleshire, England, UK
- Epigraph
- Some die eloquent ...
Some die wholly in half a breath
Some - give trouble for half a year.
A Death-Bed
by Rudyard Kipling - Dedication
- For Sylvia Cox and Norah Mallett - Scylla and Charybdis of my syntax - with love.
- First words
- It was a very long time indeed since Detective Inspector C. D. Sloan of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Berebury Division of the Calleshire County Police Force had felt such a fish out of water.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"You might just step round," said Leeyes civilly, "and tell him we were right and he was wrong. With my compliments, of course."
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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- Reviews
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- Dutch, English, Finnish
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- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 20
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